Inside The Bills

Bills sixth-round pick Dustin Hopkins was probably one of the happier kickers to be drafted by the Buffalo Bills. Most don’t want to endure the process of getting acclimated to the windy conditions that Buffalo typically dishes out from November to January. But there was a reason Hopkins didn’t mind.

His college holder is the incumbent Bills punter in Shawn Powell, who was his holder for three seasons. Hopkins has already spoken to Powell by phone. Having a holder that knows just how you like the ball held right off the bat can be a calming influence on a kicker trying to start his NFL career.

“I talked to him right after I got picked up and we talked for a little bit and I talked to him on Monday this past week too,” Hopkins told Buffalobills.com. “We didn’t talk about kicking really. I was just talking about life in general and how Buffalo is. I’m sure I’ll remind him when I get there plenty. We’ll re-orient ourselves.”

Long snapper Garrison Sanborn is also a Florida State alum. If Hopkins were to win the kicking job for the Bills the entire field goal operation could very well be entirely made up of FSU alums.